EXPERIMENT 03EXPERIMENTAL

THE BRIDGE

Can ants build infrastructure without an architect?

Two platforms separated by a gap. Food on one, the nest on the other. There is no path between them, no blueprint, and no coordinates that say where a bridge should go.

Question

Can ants build infrastructure without an architect?

Conditions

Two platforms, 12-cell gap, 260 ants.

Rules

Searching ants blocked by the gap may deposit material into it — more likely where ants crowd. A cell becomes walkable after 3 deposits. Unused material erodes.

Pass rule

A route exists across the gap and 50 loads of food have been carried over it.

Control

None — the gap is impassable without construction.

Limitations

2D, material is abstract. Does not model load-bearing physics.

Can decentralized construction produce functional architecture?